This randomized phase III trial studies aldesleukin with vaccine therapy to see how well it works compared to aldesleukin alone in treating patients with melanoma that has spread from where it started to nearby tissue or lymph nodes or to other places in the body. Aldesleukin may stimulate a person's white blood cells to kill melanoma cells. Vaccines may make the body build an immune response to kill tumor cells. It is not yet known whether combining aldesleukin with vaccine therapy is more effective than aldesleukin alone in treating melanoma.